It was quite some time back, supposedly 2 months ago, since I last have my car rinsed at a petrol kiosk. Hence, two days ago, I decided to give my car a good shower, and drove my car into Esso Petrol station in Tampines for a car wash. Well, I could not believe it, but a simple car wash that doesn’t take more than 5 minutes is now charged at $8 for a saloon car. Recalling my memory not long ago, perhaps, 1-2 years back, it was merely $6 (before they raised the price to $7).

Yes, it is due to economic inflation. Year on year, our economy inflation could go as high as 10%, but this increase is way above 14%, based on fixed currency rate. Furthermore, the quality of customer service hasn’t improved at all. Not that the service was bad, but the justification isn’t there for such an increase.

In spite of my rant on Esso, Shel and SPC aren’t any far better. It is known that he few major Petrol stations have concurrently increased the car wash pricing. Was there any non-compete agreement between them, I do not know. Nonetheless, I won’t be surprise anymore that we will have to pay $10 just for a couple of low-grade shampoo and few litres of water.

If anyone knows of any cheaper alternatives, please let me know. I can’t wait to ditch these major corporations.